The Art Of Corruption
by facetofacewiththeskies
Summary: Inspired by page 173 in Deathly Hallows. Follows the story of a group of home schooled children from a breakaway society who are forced to attend Hogwarts under the new, Death Eater controlled regime. Powerful and with lots of crazies, give it a shot please.
1. introduction

**I do not own Harry Potter**

* * *

**_"...What's Voldemort planning for Hogwarts?" she asked Lupin._**

**_"Attendance is now compulsory for every young witch and wizard," he replied_**

****** - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, page 173 **

_**"...and now I am fighting for my freedom. Think of how many of us are fighting and why. We must win this battle or die. Let the men live as slaves if they want. I will not."**_** - Boudicca, as recorded by Dio Cassius**

* * *

Dear Mr and Mrs Brindell,

We are pleased to inform you and your family that there is a significant reform being undertaken by the Ministry of Magic to better the magical community for all Witches and Wizards of Great Britain. We endeavor to make the extended Wizarding Community a pleasant and friendly place for all to live by the strong encouragement of correct mannerisms and etiquette as well as the enactment of more traditional social customs by all members of our community in order to sustain our continued secrecy from the muggle populace in conjunction with the maintenance and in some cases reestablishment of the traditional, more appropriate, lifestyle of our fore bearers.

We at the Ministry, along with the extended Wizarding Community, welcome you and your family back to England to take advantage of these newly re-implemented social customs which are for your comfort and benefit as well as that of future generations.

To make your re-entry and establishment into the local community with ease and comfort and the transition between educational instituitions seamless and without any unnecessary disruption for the children in your family, we ask that you make a timely return home well before 1st September and ensure that you visit the Ministry of Magic as soon as you arrive to receive the assistance of a personal guide who will be ready to answer all of your possible questions and to make any clarifications necessary. Your assigned ministry guide will be at your service to help you navigate the transition period between the discord and questionable values previously rife within our community and the new, more traditional customs which will serve all members of the Wizarding Community better, ensuring a brighter future.

Please find enclosed a copy of the Official Ministry Information Pack to navigate these difficult times along with a copy of the new decrees in place to create a friendlier and more pleasant community for you and your family to live in.

We look forward to seeing you very soon.

Dolores Umbridge

Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic

Head of the Muggle-born Registration Commission

* * *

Dear Mr and Mrs Brindell,

Under the new laws enacted to benefit all members of the Wizarding Community there is need for the Ministry Of Magic to confirm the identity of all families and individuals whose residence is within Great Britain.

It appears that under the previously inadequate regime some of your records have been lost or damaged. We are sincerely sorry for this inconvenience, this is yet another reason why this revitalisation of our society is so desperately needed. To complete the update of your family's records we ask you to present for individual interviews to confirm the identity and heritage of each person in your family.

Dates and times for interviews will be organised upon your arrival at the Ministry Of Magic by your assigned ministry guide.

Awaiting your arrival

Dolores Umbridge

Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic

Head of the Muggle-born Registration Commission

* * *

Staring at the thick, officially emblazoned parchment the words seemed to swim.

This didn't mean anything.

It's just words and words don't hurt.

But they do.

The sting of the unknown mixed with the surely impending disaster on this bright day at the end of winter was not lost on any of the members gathered at this semi-coastal clearing around which trees and doors abounded. One of those doors, so out of place and unconcealed, expelled another two persons into the area, adding to the noise which filled the clearing like a low growl.

"This is absolute madness!" the exclamation burst from the taller of the new arrivals. His companion purposefully dropped his bundle of papers next to a girl seated on the ground. "With all these new laws its a wonder they still have ink to write them in."

"Chris! Calm down and we'll work a loophole out of here, alright?" a worried face responded from across the clearing, drawing the attention of others.

"But there is no loophole! No. Way. Out."

Silence.

Dread and fear crept into the faces of the loosely gathered group.

"I can't do everything, can't fix everything, can't magic a solution because you all refuse to change your lives. Hide? No. Run? No. It won't happen, it can't happen, wouldn't work if we tried. We'd be too noticed, too missed. And the void we would leave behind: unimaginable." As the tall man rambled his companion sank to the ground next to his recently discarded bundle, removing himself from the possible firing line of questions and accidentally tipping the pile of papers so they slid across the ground.

"Chris, please." the woman who had previously addressed him interrupted.

She may have said more but it was lost on the girl with the words of her step-fathers letters swimming before her. The only thing to come into focus was the pink pamphlet poking out from the scattered papers.

Pink with orange lettering.

A simpering rose and a fanged green weed.

For her the world stopped. It ended with this.

"Mudbloods and the Dangers They Pose to a Peaceful Pure-Blood Society"


	2. Chapter 1

**i also dont own anything else i may reference.**

* * *

The group swelled and dwindled almost rhythmically as more doors opened and small troops traipsed up the leaf littered path towards the top of the hill. Some doors were sealed back into the undergrowth and others appeared fresh to expel their occupants, each producing a small glow of magic undetectable to the untrained eye.

Stagnant in this small flow of travelers was one girl holding a garish pink pamphlet.

"Allie... Allie..." a hand gently shook her shoulder, "You can't stay here. Come on, let's go." and still she didn't move. Allie seemed so intent upon that bright paper she may have been trying to burn it with her vision alone, though no one could doubt that if she had truly desired for fire to consume the page that it would be long gone already.

"Leon, can you help me with her?" the same voice called to his brother. In response firm hands gripped her upper arms and hauled Allie to her feet.

"C'mon, we're meeting at Gran's to sort all this out." Leon spoke in a hushed tone while marching Allie up the leaf littered path. Her gaze finally broke from the horrid orange lettering proclaiming a "Mudblood relocation program".

"I'm going to have to leave." Allie spoke as if to herself.

"Everything will be fine." Leon offered by way of comfort.

"I'm going to put everyone in danger."

* * *

At the top of the winding path was a house nestled just below the ridge of the steep hill. This house was constructed of glass and polished wood, boasting the most expansive view possible but its present occupants, a number swollen by numerous visitors, had their attention turned inwards to the pressing problem of what to do when a foreign political struggle threatened to suck them into the wake of a campaign for control and oppression.

One might think that the easiest thing to do would be to ignore any contact with the problem and disappear far out of its reach. The more severe problem that these people were facing was the consequence of their optimal and complete disappearance; they would leave a gaping hole in a black market that was ready to swell with vile business. These people ran secret trade routes for information, misinformation, illegal and quite often highly dangerous goods as well as the occasional body, making a quick getaway or otherwise.

They acted as Gate Keepers to hidden links between points in space and collected their toll as they pleased. Links and jump points that they created, kept and dispersed with magic that went unregulated and labeled as Dark Magic Class 3a.

Without this secret transport the black markets would rapidly riot at being choked and the Gate Keepers would be sought after, hunted down as laws slowly loosened for those in the position to do so while other countries closed their boarders to other methods of trade. By removing themselves from this society they placed themselves at risk. To attempt to remain truly neutral in such a climate is a fools dream; everyone has an agenda even if it's only to their own profit.

"Dad… Dad…" Allie tried to catch the attention of her step-father standing in the hall of the large house. "Dad! I need to leave."

"There are plenty of leaves being tracked inside for you here, Allie. Take your pick, there's hundreds."

"That's not funny Dad. I need to go, I have places I'll be safe and you and Max won't be in danger-

"And I suppose you'll be taking Anastasia with you?" He raised an eyebrow at his adoptive daughter who pressed her lips together at his question. "I didn't think so. If it's not a place you would take her then I doubt it will be safe for you."

"I don't want to put you and Max in danger." She persisted.

"We stick together Honey-Bee, you're not going anywhere." He reverted to her childhood nickname and it seemed to aid in stopping any argument but it could have also been the appearance of Gran and Papa, the elderly couple who called this house home and acted as unofficial patriarch and matriarch of the people gathered in their large open-plan living area.

They seemed to hold court without requiring the attention of subjects, they were family, blood or not it didn't matter to them. Everyone was welcome so this invasion of people and their troubles didn't bother the couple; they were pleased to see all their children and grandchildren, many of whom were unofficially adopted.

"What's this you're wearing?" Papa exclaimed to one of the boys, "Are you some kind of magician?" The boy grinned shyly and adjusted his bowtie.

"No, Papa, I'm like the Doctor. Bowties are cool."

"My doctor doesn't wear a bowtie, but I might listen to him more if he did and I'd want to borrow his Tardis."

"Papa, joyriding through space and time is illegal you know." The boy responded in mock disapproval.

"And who's going to stop me?" Papa teased excitedly.

* * *

Allie stared out the window as she refilled the kettle again. Things were changing in her perfectly constructed world. She didn't know if she would be allowed to travel unchecked anymore, or have a safe place to return to. She wasn't really Sebastian's daughter, he was only her step-father, did that change things? Max was his son and would come first surely. The thought of her half-brother Max wrought a line of worry across her forehead; the boy was too much of a smart arse to not get himself into trouble. She didn't want to cause him to become more of a target than he already would be.

"Allie! Watch what you're doing!" Her aunt's sharp voice broke her from her troubled reverie. She had over flowed the kettle. Quickly turning off the tap and pouring out the excess water she place the electric kettle back on its unplugged holder and snapped her fingers over the top of it.

"We could just heat the water in the cups you know."

"Yes but its just nice to have a kettle don't you think?" Her aunt mused. "Can you imagine coming up with all of these fancy gadgets Gran has? There's so much work in it, all the moving pieces and wires that go together, it seems a waste to throw aside so much thought because magic is simpler."

"It's not really simpler Aunty Jane, it's just more innate." Allie responded while distributing teabags into the mugs which didn't contain coffee granules.

"Each to their own I suppose."

* * *

Each to their own, indeed. Each family group addressed by letter was to decide if they were to stay or to go; would they disappear to seek safety or would they maintain their position as a way of attaining safety. A complete withdrawal of their entire network would be suspicious and jeopardise the other businesses which were run in both the muggle and magical worlds; a gold dealer, a business consultant and services agency and a shipping company. Everyone had to decide what they wanted to do; each decision affected one another in this closely linked network. Suspicion be damned, there were far more curious things happening in the world. In their position could they not help others and disappear in a flicker of light as they had always done?

Discussion ran through the afternoon with the number of visitors shrinking periodically. Those who wanted to leave did so and few wished to stay unnecessarily. Slowly the inner workings of businesses and connections changed to ensure that connections between these people currently elusive to the majority of society could not be easily divined by onlookers. A truthful façade had to be created. They required a public image which would not and could not be questioned. There was no room for half-heartedness, it was all or nothing for those who chose to stay exposed to the turmoil and trouble brewing.

Allie was comfortably reclined on the railing of the veranda which was topped with a piece of wood resembling a narrow bar one might order drinks over, leaning against one of the posts connecting the roof to the floor. The sun had started to sink below the tree line creating pinks and greys in the cloudy sky. It hadn't rained today.

She had requested again that she be allowed to leave. Her father had again denied her, further informing her that she was not allowed to disappear under any circumstances; he had promised her mother that he would always care for her and he couldn't do that if she ran away.

A cold breeze whipped around the steep hill, whirring through the trees and making them appear the same as the ocean in the distance. The nearer ocean, where the land flattened out was marked squares of different greens, some dotted with cattle and the occasional house or shed. The join between land and sea was visible at small points where the ocean pounded against the rocks, sending spray into to the air. Between here and there a cluster of bright lights shone, indicating a small town linked east and west along the coast by a thin stream of moving lights where the trees thinned. It was beautiful in a quiet way but it all felt so far away and isolated.

The glass door between the house and the verandah slid open and shut.

"Aren't you freezing out here?"

"Only a little bit." Allie turned to look at Leon, "I see you're not the only one who thinks bowties are cool."

"Ah, he gets it from me," Leon grinned and adjusted his bowtie in a fashion he supposed would be described as 'jauntily'. "because I'm so good looking."

"You're so full of yourself." Allie turned away from Aunt Jane's son and went back to staring at the darkening scenery.

"Hey, it's what the ladies like." He quipped.

Silence fell between them.

"I'm going to be going to school and whatnot," Leon tried starting again, "so if you end up there too at least you'll have a friend before you start, you won't be alone because you'll have me." He grinned to emphasise his cheery statement.

"I'll be wherever I'm meant to be. Isn't that the way? 'What will be, will be' and all that." Allie mused.

"It'll be ok, you just need to lighten up." He leant closer with a reinforced grin.

"What…" Allie looked at his quizzically, "are you doing?"

"Come on." He grabbed at her hand and pulled.

"What?" She resisted.

"Come on." He tugged harder and succeeded in shifting her from her perch so she then stood on the wooden boards of the verandah. "You need to lighten up." He lifted his arm, offering her to twirl around as if in a dance. "C'mon…" He started to walk around her, still holding her hand and pushing against her other arm to try and turn her.

"I don't want to dance, Leon."

"Well you're no fun. I was only trying to help." He let go of her and turned back to re-enter the house. "Dinner will be ready soon." He said at the last moment before sliding the door shut.

Allie breathed out a heavy sigh and hung herself half over the railing. Staring at her shins she let her mind go blank. Here was a half upside down girl on the upside-down side of the world with fading bruises on her shins and dirty knees. There was even a leaf stuck to the side of one of her ratty old trainers. She had a step-father who was as good as any dad, a mother she barely remembered who had died giving birth to her half-brother, whom she loved dearly, when she was three, an aunt named Jane who was like a surrogate mother and a wildly extended family of relatives and family friends. She wriggled further over the railing so she was bent at the hips, not at the waist and her head was among the daffodils which appreciated the current climate in this part of the world. The blood pounded in her ears, adding to the silence she was trying to create in the thickening darkness and gloom.

"Allie? What are you doing?" A familiar child's voice called to her through the sliding door.

"Everything smells different upside down, did you know that?"

"Really?" came the clearly non-believing response.

"No not really but I thought it might be fun."

"You're weird."

"Come and try it."

"Your face is going red."

Allie wriggled back onto the correct side of the railing and slithered to the ground in a dizzy spell. Max came and sat beside her.

"Are you ok?" He asked her

"Yeah I just made myself dizzy. And you're just as weird as me, we're half the same remember." She grinned at him.

"You got all the crazy half." He teased.

"Well you got all the stupid half."

"That doesn't even make sense."

"You didn't make sense first." She rubbed his hair and when he tried to do the same she wrapped him in a bear hug and didn't let go despite his complaints of being suffocated and covered in girl smell. "Calm down you little monster, I just want to give you a hug." He finally stopped wriggling and returned the hug.

"Are you leaving, Allie?" The question was small as though he was scared of the answer. "Please don't leave."

"I'm not leaving. Don't worry, I won't go anywhere without you." He squeezed her tighter. They sat there together in darkness as the strings of fairy lights slowly came on. Instead of dark and gloomy the world seemed lighter and more magical.

"You're scarier than anything else out there, so all I need to do is follow you around and I'll be fine." Max grinned at her, awaiting her response to his mock-serious declaration.

"Are you two going to come in and eat?" Aunt Jane called to them. Max's eyes grew wide in fake horror and he started to wail.

"Don't. Leave. Me." He overly dramatically mimed shaking Allie back and forth to punctuate each word.

* * *

Dinner was served on Gran and Papa's extended dining table, the chairs lined it through to the lounge space where the couches were pushed out of the way. Everyone helped themselves to the baked and roasted vegetables and chicken drumsticks which had been expertly prepared under the supervision of Gran and Aunt Jane. Of the 25 or so people around the table only 7 of them were not adults. Only 6 of these children were of an age where attending Hogwarts would be necessary. The remaining adults were the bare bones to operate all business and interest within the soon to be war-time nation, plus Gran, Papa and Aunty Jane.

While the dinner conversation was light it gave way to the details of who would do what and where and how people were expected to behave and the necessary paper work which needed to be obtained. The possibilities for the seamless re-fabrication of questionable heritage. The pro's and con's of allowing the passage of dangerous poisons. The artistry in how one disappears silently.

Aunt Jane would be taking her youngest, bowtie wearing child, the only one present under 11 years, to Spain and setting up a safe house while her husband and two older sons, including Leon, would set themselves up to siphon information out of Britain to those in the rest of the world considering their stakes in the country whom they deemed it reasonable to tell.

The remaining adults would play their respective roles which they were either already playing or covering a role they were junior to previously to keep the passages of business and trade open where it would benefit any agenda they chose to favour without drawing attention to their self favouritism.

The remaining five children, including Max and Allie, were to play the perfect pure-blood offspring in a way that favoured them most. They were not to try to be the same as the others but to blend in enough that they weren't thought of. For safety the two groups of siblings were to start off pretending as though they didn't know each other, which wasn't difficult as they had never spent a huge amount of time together.

"It's like a secret undercover mission." Max whispered to Allie. "Pass me the cheese?" Allie complied and the young boy upended the remaining contents of the bowl on to his plate, completely smothering his half eaten potatoes.

"Are you serious?" She snatched the bowl from him. "You're not a spy, so there's no hidden message in the cheese."

"Should we have code names?" Max ingeniously spoke before stuffing his mouth full of potato and cheese.

"No. You're being snobbish you and I'm being snobbish me. That's it, we be all uppity and listen when we are being ignored." Allie poked Max in the ribs causing him to splutter out fragments of food. Lynette, one of the other children to be attending Hogwarts, threw a disgusted look at Max for his rather artful spraying of half chewed potato. When he could breathe and speak normally again Max looked straight at Allie with a most sober expression and said:

"That sounds dreadfully dull, my dear."


	3. Chapter 2

**I dont have a beta so this is unedited which i am fine with.**

* * *

Gran and Papa's house seemed to multiply its rooms to accommodate any one who stayed there. There were never too many or too few rooms. Most who had eaten dinner stayed the night; some had to return to their posts as suited businessmen or cloaked travel guides immediately.

Allie woke to sunlight streaming through her window and birds calling loudly. It still hadn't rained. On this unusually warm winters day she wore her jeans from yesterday and selected a pink t-shirt and yellow cardigan from the pile of clothes that had been delivered to her in the night. Fixing her blonde hair into two braids she decided she must look like one of the most childish 16 year old girls ever. Stepping into the hall way she was met by a mop of messy brown hair.

"Ugh, why do you always look like such a girl?" Max teased.

"I could braid your hair for you it's so long." She replied, "Then we would match, little sister." They bantered back and forth on their way to breakfast, it was almost like a normal morning at home.

"Good morning Honey-bee, you're not being too hard on him I hope." Her father greeted her with a smile and awkward shuffling as he couldn't decide if he should hug her or not.

"Morning Dad." She stepped around him, heading for the crockery.

"And what about you Max, are you behaving yourself?"

"Of course I am." The boy grinned at his father and gave him a hug.

"Would you like a hot chocolate Max?" Allie asked as she opened a cupboard.

"Good morning Daddy. Good morning Mummy." Lynette appeared in the dining room where her parents were seated.

"Can you make it with marshmallows?" Max asked hopefully.

"Well I'm certainly able to." Allie sent two mugs to the counter where they began filling with chocolate powder swirling into milk.

"But will you? Please, please, please?" He draped himself on the edge of the counter and pouted.

"I might." She retrieved a bag of marshmallows from the top cupboard with a beckoning hand.

"I'll have one as well." Lynette's loud voice carried to the kitchen. "Please, Allie." The girl added with a smile.

A third mug landed a touch too violently next to the two full mugs and began to fill itself.

"Manners, Honey-bee." Her father chastised from over his newspaper.

Allie made a show of placing marshmallows into the two steaming mugs for her brother's exaggerated entertainment; two pink and two white in each. She placed her hand over the top of one of the mugs and made a buzzing noise, sending the marshmallows in her cup to goo to make alternating pink and white quarters.

"Like a microwave, now you try." She smiled and pushed the second cup towards Max who looked slightly mad with excitement at the prospect. He placed his hand over the cup and with great concentration made a buzzing noise.

"AHH!" Sparks issued from the mug and Max was suddenly three meters from where he was a second before looking rather frazzled. The marshmallows had melted partially but then caught fire, two of which quickly doused their flames by rolling over and partially sinking in the hot chocolate, a third burnt out after a moment but the fourth sported a fantastically fizzling crown of bluish fire. Allie appeared rather stunned but calmly blew out the remaining flames.

"What happened? Are you ok?" Their father appeared in the kitchen looking worriedly between his two children.

"Don't put metal in the microwave." She offered quietly.

"What's going on over there?" Lynette called out.

"Nothing!" Max yelled, rushing to drop a few marshmallows in the third cup and send it on a wild ride across the vast room before skidding to a halt in front of its recipient.

"Careful! You nearly spilt it on me." Lynette admonished.

"Nearly," Max echoed with a grin. "but not quite." His father rolled his eyes and returned to his newspaper.

* * *

"Alrighty Kiddo's, time for some schooling, so we'll get our wand's out and find something useful to do with a book." Chris smiled widely at the small group and snapped the book he held open shut. "Like a seat for you, short-stuff." He dropped the book on the ground next to a young girl with black curls who promptly pouted and sat down on the offered seat.

The group of 6 teenagers, including the smallest one still pouting on top of a book, lounged in various positions in the clearing-come-backyard, following Chris' lead. Lynette stationed herself beside her little sister and their brother chose a tree stump several meters to the left. All three siblings were smartly dressed and sported curly black hair which in Lynette's case was dragged out into waves by the weight of its length. Leon and Chris, being brothers, had the same dark brown hair and tall, lean stature wrapped in clothing purposed to show their best features, the goatee on the older brother's face the defining feature of the 5 years that separated them. Max chose the lay on the ground and roll around in the leaves to make a decision between the better viewing purposes of his front and back while his sister Allie nestled against a tree within kicking distance of his leg. These two siblings were the least alike in the appearance which could be explained by their only partially shared parentage, but still they possessed the same blue green eyes, tanned skin and thick hair in a pale and a dark version.

"So what tricks are we going to learn?" Leon tried to smile and hold a serious face at the same time.

"First you're going to learn what you need to learn." Chris responded. "and you'll do it in your own time because we have better things to do here."

"You're actually giving us homework?" Lynette asked. Max groaned and threw leaves in the air.

"It had to happen eventually." Chris responded to Lynette while looking at Max. "So you guys are going to have to read up on this school you will be attending and I'd suggest a few school books as well as some on basic curse and hex work, might as well go with a defense as well, oh and modern history would do you some good too." He paused briefly to allow for questions or complaints, on hearing none but seeing pained faces he continued. "These people you will be associating with will either be scared or dangerous, probably both, so you should keep that in mind and just be careful if you think picking a fight is a good idea." He looked pointedly at Leon and Max, who Allie kicked for emphasis. Chris raised an eyebrow at Lynette, "Bitch fights included. Just don't do it, okay?" He glanced at Allie after receiving some kind of non-verbal affirmation from the other girl. Leon smirked at his brother's worry.

"You need to understand how dangerous you could make this situation for yourselves by saying the wrong thing. Sympathy towards muggles won't make you look good to the people who are coming into power. You should try to keep the same neutral position your parents are taking, I know it's not ideal but if you're going to be in it try to know both sides of it. And you little kids," Chris addressed the youngest three, Lynette's siblings and Max. "keep your heads down, you don't need to be a part of any inquisitions or subterfuge."

After an appropriate length of time spent posing pointless questions and half-hearted complaining, Chris gave the order for them to all stand up and produce their wands. All complied surprising quickly for the amount of stalling they had just achieved. After checking each of his unofficial students' basic technique he began running them through what could only be described as a crash course of the first three years of the Hogwarts syllabus. The most difficult part was the recollection of incantations and wand movements, in a fix the older 'students' would cast the spell by will and intention but nothing slipped past Chris in their backyard classroom.

In approximately and hour and a half Chris came to the end of some enormous internal list and heaved a sigh.

"That was easier than I expected." He spoke to himself.

"My braaaaaaiiinnnnn…." Max wailed dramatically, at which they were all dismissed for a short break.

* * *

"You do realise where you're sending your children Sebastian?" Aunt Jane spoke harshly to Allie and Max's father.

"I am well aware of where I am sending them, Jane." He responded in a mild tone. "The school is renowned as one of the safest places to be in times of trouble and you never know, Allie might make some friends."

"Sending her to boarding school? Maybe you should have made her attend school more consistently to begin with."

"It was her choice where she went; we agreed she could do whatever she wanted to once she turned 13. I'm not the type of man to break a promise to my child."

"That was a silly promise to make, how do you even know where she goes? And she changes schools so often, always in and out of distance education –

The small sound of the front door closing caused Aunt Jane's sudden silence. A small troop traipsed in and spread themselves over various surfaces, mainly chairs but Max chose the mostly empty coffee table and Sarah the youngest girl chose the fluffy rug beside it. Allie summoned a glass of water to her perch by the kitchen counter.

"Allie, some paper work arrived just an hour ago that you might want to look over." Her father spoke to her in a kindly voice which wasn't an unusual tone for him to take with his children.

"What's it about?" She asked as she reached for the proffered bundle.

"I requested copies of the 'remains' of our records from the Ministry of Magic."

"That was fast." She raised an eyebrow questioningly at her father.

"These new laws make it easier to push for _favouritism_." He phrased with some care.

"Clever. So what are we now? Rich, famous, feared and above all foul?" She grinned sardonically.

"It depends on how you look at the first one, the second; I certainly hope not. I can be scary when it's necessary and so can you but not the last one quite yet, I'd like to think there's still some class in our name."

Allie looked over the pages; there was record of her father and brother to completion but only a marriage certificate and registry of adoption for her and her mother, no birth certificates, no medical record. She sifted through the pages, enrolment forms, immigration forms, even a contract for the acquisition of real estate. At the very bottom of the pile was her mother's death certificate.

"When Chris is done today I'm going out to see a few friends, ok Dad?" She partially requested permission.

"Which friends are these?" Sebastian pressed his lips together.

"The usual." She downed the last of her glass of water and got up to return to the backyard classroom.

"Stay safe." He called after her.

"I always am." She yelled as she shut the door.

* * *

Chris was leant against a tree slowly flicking through his book from earlier. Allie positioned herself back into the roots of the tree she had leant against earlier. They sat in silence. Allie closed her eyes and listened to the rustling of birds in the trees and the almost imperceptible sound of pages being turned.

"So do you have a boyfriend?" Chris broke the silence but not his pattern of lifting pages.

"No." Allie snorted and looked away from him.

"Uh-huh" He raised his eyebrows at the book. "So you're in the two thirds who are still virgins at 16?"

"That doesn't seem like a very accurate number."

"Maybe you're just going to a slutty school."

"There are sluts everywhere." She grinned at him. "Some of the sluttiest ones are the virgins."

"Sluts love high school." Chris paused for thought. "So these girls don't count blow jobs as sex?"

"I don't know." She looked away again and they lapsed into silence.

"Everyone loves dick but that doesn't mean you should go for a guy who's a dick. You know what I'm saying?" Chris started their conversation again.

"You know a lot about dicks do you?" Allie teased but didn't look in his direction.

"Of course, but what I'm trying to say is that my brother is a dick who flirts too much with too many girls and I don't want to see you get hurt."

"Thanks." She smiled softly at him turning her head in his direction.

The others started appearing for the resumption of class. When they were all assembled again Chris began teaching them a variety of defensive and offensive spells from the third year level he had cleared them to. This being the year level that the youngest two, Max and Sarah, would be beginning on the first of September. Despite this being below the level of the older 'students' they participated without complaint and experimented with extra tricks and amplifications of the spells suggested by Chris and of their own invention. An hour later Chris called the class to an end on account of Max getting on his nerves and a prior engagement to be present for his father's business meeting negotiating a trade partnership.

Where everyone turned back to the house Allie went the opposite direction, down the hill towards the coast.

She was going to see some friends.


	4. Chapter 3

**WARNING: this chapter contains non-consensual sexual activities, threats of violence and other horrible things. DO NOT READ if you have any issues with these things. I honestly don't want to upset or traumatise anyone.**

**I write for pleasure and for pain. Some things are realer than others. **

Allie walked down the same path she had been walked up just yesterday. There were clouds gathering in the sky but it was still yet to rain. When she reached the clearing she paused for a second to centre herself and push her magic out to feel for the small, magical insignia's which indicated a door before carefully walking south-west. She soon found the one she was looking for, zeroing in on its small flare. She felt the small scar of magic Papa had left all those years ago when he joined this place to another and requested it open.

On its recognition of her a set of saloon style doors appeared suspended on invisible hinges. It was tastefully aged, the lacquer wearing thin in spots. Allie pushed open one side and stepped through onto a secluded part of the beach. The sky was beginning to grey with clouds and taking the colour of the ocean with it, the scene would have been bleak had it not been for the sun still warming the sand. She changed the colour of her yellow cardigan to black and darkened the wash of her jeans, her t-shirt became a pale blue and her trainer's, ballet flats. She used her wand so she could be more certain the spells would stick until she chose to remove them neatly and cleanly, she didn't trust her distracted mind to complete the task wandlessly.

The lone girl walked to the roadside and stood at a bus stop. She hid her wand in her pocket and waited. She took her hair out of its two plaits and fixed it into a loose bun.

The rattling town bus ran through the small coastal town towards the next, slightly larger town up the highway. Allie, one of two passengers, smudged black along her eyelashes and lids. Her pockets contained more than they showed as she hated to carry a bag of any kind with her, few of the kids her age did so because they had nothing to put in such a vessel but school books they rarely read.

The bus took her to the next town and out the other side, further on to Allie's destination. Now one of five passengers she stared out the window and ignored their antics and the disgruntled sighs of the one elderly passenger. At her destination of the single stop in the blink-and-you-missed-it-town she gave the bus driver a tight smile and flat goodbye.

Allie walked to the small shop covered in peeling paint but didn't enter it. Her eyes on her feet she took the laneway down the side of the building, she didn't need to see where she was going, she had been here plenty of times before.

She entered the house unannounced and said a small greeting to the woman in the laundry room who made small talk before bidding her on to her final destination.

The room was dark and smelled of sweat and dirt. Allie softly clicked the door shut behind her and moved around the furniture and mess to the window where she pulled at the curtains to let in some light.

"ARGH! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? CLOSE THE CURTAINS!" A partially muffled voice yelled from the bed.

"I just wanted to let some light in." She closed the curtains.

"Well, I was trying to sleep." The person in the bed responded hotly.

"It's the afternoon now, you should really be awake." She said softly, picking her way closer to the bed.

"I'm sick."

Allie didn't have a response for this; she stood by the corner of the bed and fiddled with her cardigan, contemplating taking her shoes off. The occupant of the bed rolled over and lifted a corner of the doona cover.

"Come here. I missed you." He used a much sweeter tone and for some reason it worked and Allie complied, removing her shoes and cardigan and crawling onto the dirty sheets. He curled around her and kissed the back of her neck.

"Your hair is pretty." He seemed to go back to sleep for a short while and Allie relaxed more into the mattress and his shirtless torso. He rolled away from her and she let her mind go blank, listening to the activities of the house. No clocks ticked and time became irrelevant as Allie went blank.

He rolled back towards her, almost onto her as she had shifted onto her back in the small bed. He kissed her and she responded automatically, she opened her mouth and slid her tongue against his. He bit her lip and she gasped at the pain. He sucked at her neck and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her on top of him, she didn't follow him at first but he was insistent so there she sat on top of him, hunched forward so he could continue to lick the inside of her mouth while his hands rubbed over her t-shirt, feeling her chest and sides. It wasn't long before his hips started to buck against hers, she complied with this request almost immediately.

Allie didn't know why she did this. It made her brain shut down, the silence was both suffocating and relieving. She didn't think about anything, she shut it all out. But it was good to be wanted, to be touched, wasn't it?

He pulled her shirt off and sucked and bit at her neck as he pulled at her bra straps. Her bottom lip felt sore, she buried her face in the pillow next to his head. She pressed her chest against his. When he had her bra unclipped he pushed her arms through the straps like undressing an uncooperative child. He pushed against her shoulders to get her to lift herself off him so he could remove the bra from between them. He held a breast in each hand and pinched the nipples, biting and sucking on each in turn with little care for being gentle.

When he reached for the button of her jeans she spoke to him again.

"I have my period remember?"

His brow furrowed across his closed eyes as if in pain. She slid from her perch and lay down again. The only noise was the chatter of the television down the narrow hallway.

"I told you the day before yesterday," she spoke quietly after a time "you still wanted me to come over. Remember?" He seemed to suppress a sigh.

"It's ok." He conceded.

He turned towards her and pulled her to him. She reached out and softly stole kisses from his mouth. The sound of shattering china wasn't acknowledged by either occupant of the dim room. The unintelligible yelling that ensued gave no issue to him but she stilled her movements in distraction and concern.

His hand encircled her wrist. She considered slipping his grasp but it was too late.

He pushed her hand towards his groin. She felt nausea fill her stomach and climb, causing her to pull her hand back.

He didn't loosen his grip. Her emptied mind was filled with fog.

He pressed her hand against himself, semi-hard beneath her fingers. She stilled for long enough for his hand to release her.

She reclaimed her hand and subtly shifted her weight to make repetition more difficult. He sighed and a pained expression settled on his face.

"Just because you can't," He sulked, "doesn't mean I can't have fun."

The fog in her mind thickened, filling her body, making her numb, filling all that blank space.

"That's not fair."

His hand encircled her wrist again. He tugged her with him as he rolled on to his back.

The fog wrapped around her insides and stifled the nausea.

The fog filled her. Even her eyes.

Allie absently picked at the birds nest in the back of her hair as she gazed around for her shirt. She could have simply reached out for its charmed aura but she never exercised this talent here. He was rolled over and drifting back to sleep. She had quickly wiped the watery mess from her fingers but had acquired a foul taste in her mouth long before the climax to his short lived exercise. Her shirt was in the corner by the window.

Fully dressed she considered the round form in the bed.

"Don't fall asleep yet." Allie called in a jovial tone as she crawled across the bedding.

"What is it?" He sighed in irritation. "I'm tired."

"Don't you want to talk to me?" She teased, feeling more like herself.

"Of course I want to talk to you, I'm just tired." He appeared hurt.

"Well…" She paused to adjust herself and judge his mood. "You know how my dad does business stuff in a lot of different places around the country and sometimes overseas, pretty much all over the place."

"Yes. I know. You've told me before, you know that right?" He stared at the roof.

"Yeah." Allie pushed on. "Well. this time he's going away and it could be for a really long time and I have to go with him."

"What? You say he's gone, but then he's not really gone, all the time." He looked at her now. She averted her eyes.

"He's being relocated, this might be forever."

"Then I'll come with you, I need to be away from these people, I'd go crazy without you." He sat up with a look of real concern on his face.

"You can't come with me-

"Do you kids want anything to eat?" The voice of the woman from the laundry room cut through Allie's soft reply.

"Yeah, I'll be out in a minute!" He yelled at the door the small woman stood on the other side of.

Allie stood up and left the room, clicking the door shut behind her.

The small woman had produced freshly baked packet-mix muffins which Allie's boyfriend's friends were enjoying, lounged around the room. Allie joined them after a detour to the bathroom to wash her hands and straighten out the knot in her hair. One of the boys joked about the best foods coming from boxes and Allie grinned at him. She was soon part of the banter about nothing and video games, which was still not much more than nothing to Allie. For a few minutes there wasn't a trace of fog inside her.

"Mum, I'm moving away with Allie." He announced to the small woman in the adjacent kitchen.

"You're not moving, why would you and Allie do that?" The small woman stood tall and questioned her son.

"You're moving away Allie?" One of the boys questioned her.

"I have to, my Dad is being moved and me and my brother have to go with him." Yelling issued from kitchen, the door to which was now partially closed.

"That sucks," Said one, staring concernedly at the half open door.

"So why is he going with you?" asked another.

"He can't. My Dad won't allow it but he seems to think otherwise." The yelling reached a peak with a roar and a crash. He reappeared, slamming the door behind him.

He marched over to Allie and wrapped her in a tight embrace; he was sweating and breathing heavily. The fog attempted to reclaim her mind.

"I need to leave now. Where are we going?" He released her and stared earnestly, desperately into her eyes.

She flinched away from his attention.

"You can't come with me." Her voice was even despite the unease she felt inside.

"I have to." He pressed.

"My Dad won't let you; you can't live with me." Allie stared blankly past him, through him.

"Then I'll move by myself to where you are." He sounded more certain as his breathing slowed to normal. "Where are you going to?"

The faintest line creased between Allie's eyebrows and her lips turned down, looking sad and uncertain her brain cleared of any remaining fog and started to tick over coldly, logically.

"I don't know, Dad doesn't have all the details yet but it's going to be overseas, somewhere in Asia." Allie watched his face wrinkle in thought; slick, cold logic took over her mind, he was going to be difficult about it now.

"That's ridiculous; you can't just be dragged off to somewhere in Asia. He's not even your real father. You don't have to do what he says all the time. You can stay here, I bet it's a lot nicer here and you'll fit in better than with a bunch of Ching-Chongs. I'd go there with you but I know you don't want to stay there forever so isn't it better to just leave-

"I'm not leaving my family." Sharp and cold, Allie directed her eyes to the ground to hide the ice in her gaze.

"We can live together, just us. We can be our own family." He became decidedly more earnest. "None of this bullshit, you make me so happy, please, I need you." He reached out to her but she turned away from him.

"Please, there's nothing I can do." The quiet whisper was heard all around the room in all its strain and hitch. Allie counted the fractions of seconds for predicted response.

"Shit. Mate," on cue one of the other boys spoke up. "don't you think you're being a bit dramatic? She doesn't have a choice." Allie ducked her head and slipped out of the room with an audible sniff. She had maybe ten seconds for him to get over his shock at her refusing his outstretched arms when she exited, plus maybe another thirty from his friends trying to speak reason.

She grabbed her cardigan and shoes, automatically checking she was in possession of all her effects, she made the decision to risk cutting her allotted time short by exiting his room again to reach the door and leave. He might not notice her if she was lucky.

She was not so lucky.

"Where are you going?" He called to her and for a moment her instinct to curse him and run nearly over powered the coldness in her mind. Nausea returned as she fought for control and slowed her steps, tears pricked in her eyes. Tears would work. "Stay, we need to sort this out." His pleading tone bled out any power in the demand.

Allie whirled around to face him, letting sadness well up inside her to put on display.

"You're being horrible." Her voice hitched in the right places and was higher in pitch.

This small display of emotional reaction had an intense effect on the round boy. He dropped to his knees in front of her and sobbed. He whispered words about how he was awful at being a boyfriend and that he was trying, he wants to be better, he loves her so much, he feels horrible, she can't leave now.

Guilt clawed its way through her and tears spilled over her cheeks momentarily. Fog began to eat at the cold in her mind. She couldn't move. The other occupants of the lounge room exited the house silently except for one breathed 'shit'. The world seemed to empty, shrink and still as she stood there. She had hurt him. Now she was unsure what to do.

Allie closed her eyes and swallowed, trying to find her voice.

"You're not going to change anything, there's nothing we can do." She spoke quietly, the tear induced inflections unfortunately adding desperation to her words.

"Run away with me." He stared up at her, pleading, desperate.

"I can't do that." She regained the evenness to her voice. "I need to leave." She moved her feet in small careful steps towards the door, listening and sensing any of his movements.

He dropped his head into his hands and sobbed loudly. Allie took bigger steps to move herself to the door faster. She was almost at the door when she heard him stand, slowly. She was cold again, control saw her footsteps refuse to falter.

"So you only came here for one last fuck?" His voice seemed normal, as if delivering a pleasant greeting.

"Don't say that." Allie replied with pain in her voice, she measured her foot steps and laid her hand on the door handle just as he exploded.

"ONE LAST FUCK!"

Allie turned the handle and pushed the door open.

"YOU CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF IT CAN YOU!"

She didn't respond as she stepped out the door.

"YOU'RE DISCUSTING!"

She walked away cold, not bothering to shut the door.

"COMING HERE AND NOT EVEN TELLING ME THIS FIRST?"

He raged, clinging to the door frame as she turned at the corner of the house.

"YOU JUST WANT MY DICK!"

He was coming closer. The cold in her mind started to slip away. There was a small woman's whine inside the house, from the kitchen with pain.

"THAT'S ALL I'M WORTH TO YOU, ISN'T IT?"

The cold melted in hot drips down her spine, making a fire in her belly.

"YOU'RE SUCH A SLUT!"

"SHUT UP! You're being stupid! There's nothing you can do about this." Allie rounded on him, her fingers twitched to her pocket hiding her wand.

"You're being unreasonable." He switched tactics. "We can work this out."

"No. There's nothing here, because I'm a _slut_." Allie spat the last word at him, less than one meter away from her.

"I'm sorry I said that, I'm so sorry." He whimpered in echo of the cry audible through the wall of the house. "I just can't lose you. I don't have anyone else."

"_If I'm the only thing you have then you have a very sad life._" The words hissed out of her with venom, fueled by fury magic rushed through and around her. She pointed at him with her wand arm and stared straight into his eyes. "_Have a fucking miserable life without me_."


End file.
